The Silver Trio
by katie98ification
Summary: After the final battle at Hogwarts, Neville, Ginny and Luna look back on their years of friendship.
1. After the Battle

"Oh my GOD, you were _amazing_!"

"When you told him you'd join him when hell freezes over-"

"And then you just KILLED the thing! You just chopped it's head right off, it was awesome!"

"Amazing!"

"Can I have your autograph?"

"You're my _hero!" _"Yes, yes, thank you very much..." Neville managed to close the common room door just before a particularly eager third-year grabbed a piece of his shirt. He turned around and adressed the two girls in front of him, smiling. "Damn," he said with a chuckle. "Kill one snake and _bam_, you're a stud. I could do without all that high-pitched squeeling, though."

"Oh, shut up, you love it," said Ginny Weasley, a small, red-haired girl sitting cross-legged on the floor of the Gryiffindor common room next to her best friend, Luna Lovegood. A smile appeared on her face as she spoke. It faded quickly, and Neville remembered.

"I'm _so_ sorry, Ginny" he said, sitting down on the floor next to her. "We'll all miss him. Your brother was..." his voice trailed off as Ginny began to cry, and he decided instead to join Luna in patting her comfortingly on the back.

"It's just..." Ginny tried to stop crying. "I want to be happy right now... Voldemort's gone, it's finally over, Harry won. But Fred... he was my brother..." The tears began again.

"How's George?" asked Neville.

"Horrible. The last time I saw him was in the Great Hall, when everyone was celebrating. He was just sitting there, staring at his lap. Not even crying. It's like a part of him died right along with Fred..."

"You know," said Luna, softly "when my mum died, that's how I felt. Like a piece of my soul was ripped away from me." She looked of into space, sadly. "But then I realized that she wasn't really gone. She never could be. You remember learning about religions in Muggle Studies? Well, I'm not sure if I believe in Heaven. But that seems a lot more likely to me than death just being the end. There's got to be something beyond the veil..."

Ginny suddenly reached over and hugged Luna tightly "You're right. Harry told me, about what you said when Sirius died. Fred's not gone. He can't be."

"I remember that night," Neville remarked. "Our first adventure together."

A tiny smile formed on Ginny's face "Yeah..." she said in a faraway voice. "You know..." she began "you two... you're the best...the best friend I could..." her voice broke and she began crying again, but softer this time, with just one tear traveling down each freckled cheek and a nostalgic look on her face.

"Yeah. We know." said Luna, in such a Luna voice that all three couldn't help but laugh.

"I mean it, though. You are."

"You too." said Luna. "All those times you've defended me... remember that time in second year? When we first met?"

"Yeah," said Ginny, smiling...


	2. Ginny Speaks

It was a Wednesday in January. Amanda McDonald and Natalie Lane were sitting in Potions class, listening to Snape drown on about something that was no doubt boring and useless. Amanda tapped her quill against her desk rhythmically, waiting for it to be over. She looked around the classroom at the bored faces of her classmates. Luna Lovegood was reading The Quibbler under her desk. Amanda chuckled. That girl was hilarious. The class ended an eternity later, and the two got out of their seats, and resumed their favorite pastime: picking on Luna

"Hey, Luna! That's a GREAT necklace you have there," said Amanda, giggling, as they walked over to Luna's seat, where she was putting books into her bag as the class around them left, except for a few other Gryffindors who gathered around to watch.

"I know you're making fun of me." said Luna very softly, which caused both girls to shriek with laughter.

"No!" said a giggly Natalie Lane. "It's SO cool, Luna. What are those, Butterbeer corks? Where did you get it?" She reached out and grabbed the necklace.

"I _made_ it," she said, jerking her necklace out of her hand "and it's_ mine_." Amanda and Natalie began to laugh hysterically.

"You're _so_ funny, Luna. I was reading your Dad's magazine the other day. Brilliant man." Amanda smirked.

"Don't talk about my Dad." Luna was on the verge of tears, and Amanda and Natalie began again to laugh loudly.

"Oh my God, Luna, you are just to mu-"

"Leave her alone."

The crowd was silenced. All heads turned to a short, skinny, freckle-faced redhead standing in the middle of the crowd. Her name was Ginny Weasley, although she was more commonly referred to as "the girl who caused all that trouble last year" or simply "creepy ginger".

Last year, she was possessed by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and petrified several students while under his control. Eventually, You-Know-Who tried to kill her to, and Harry Potter had to rescue her. Now, this girl had a look on her face like she meant business, and the small crowd began to part to give her room.

"...What?"

"You heard me. You're always teasing her about something. Why do you even care? She's always perfectly nice to you, I've never heard her say anything unkind to you or anyone else. Just because you have nothing better to do with your time than harass innocent people who you think are easy targets doesn't give you the right to."

"Um, excuse me, you..." Amanda's face got very red. She didn't know at all how to react to this girl. Since when did anyone care whether or not she made fun of Luna? _Well, Luna probably cares,_ she admitted to herself.

Ginny was not done. "Oh, excuse yourself! I don't even know how you made it into Gryffindor anyway, you've got to be one hell of a coward to go around picking on people you know won't fight back! You're cowards, and you don't belong in Gryffindor!"

"That's funny," Amanda retorted, smirking, as she regained some composure "coming from the Heir of _Slytherin."_

The confident grimace on Ginny's face disappeared as a look of pure shock and hurt washed over her. She trembled a bit, and tried to respond, when Snape walked over, menacingly.

"What's this, what's this? Class is over," he snarled. He looked at Amanda, Natalie, Ginny and Luna, who seemed to be the cause of the disruption. "Fifty points from Gryffindor and Ravenclaw for this little production."

"But Luna didn't even DO anything!"

"_And,"_ Snape continued, "the four of you can see me in detention. Miss Weasley, I recommend you watch your step. You really wouldn't want any more trouble, after what happened last year."

Ginny looked at him, stunned. Even Natalie and Amanda looked surprised that a teacher would say something so cruel. "Now, all of you. Get to class."

They walked out of the classroom. Once they got into the corridor, the group ran into a class of third-year Gryffindors, heading into poitions. Natalie walked up to and hugged her boyfriend, Dean Thomas, looking like no one had ever suffered so much, and scowled at Ginny. The redhead grabbed Luna by the arm, stuck her tongue out at Amanda and Natalie, turned the corner, and marched off, happily.

"Wow." Neville Longbottom raised his eyebrows, very impressed. "I've never even heard her _talk_."

"Thank you so much, Ginny" Luna began, as they walked down the corridor together. "That was really the nicest thing anyone here's done for me, honestly. Thank you. I'm so sorry you got in trouble."

"No problem." Ginny smiled. "Listen, this is going to sound stupid, but... let's be friends."

Luna's eyes widened, and she smiled widely and let out a squeal "Yes! I would love to be friends! I... need a friend," she admitted.

"Yeah." Ginny looked at Luna. "Yeah, me too."


	3. Families and Frogs

The rest of the week went better than any time Ginny could remember since before she started Hogwarts. She liked Luna very much, even if she was quite odd, and having a best friend made school much more fun. Luna seemed happier, too- Ginny saw her smiling in the hallways, very different from the faraway, almost sad look she usually wore. The two shared a fondness for Muggle books, which Ginny managed to "borrow" from her father- a Muggle enthusiast- and Luna's mother, also fascinated by Muggle things herself, passed on to her when she was young.

The two of them met up that morning under a tree near the lake, and after returning the books they traded ("Oh, I loved it! _'What a treacherous thing, to believe that a person is more than a person'_... I really think John's my new favorite author!" "Oh, isn't he wonderful? I loved yours, too. It was funny and serious all at once...Mr. Sir reminded me of Filch.") they began to people-watch, while eating Chocolate Frogs.

"There's my brother, Percy." said Ginny, pointing to a tall, skinny boy with curly red hair and a smug look on his face. He was reprimanding some first-years for feeding the giant squid. One of them had snuck behind him and was mimicking him, and the others looked like they were trying to contain their giggles.

"Oh, I know him," said Luna. "Isn't he Gryffindor's Head Boy?"

Ginny snorted and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, he's Head Boy. When he got that stupid badge in the mail, it was all he could talk about all summer. He's thinks he's so perfect. You know, sometimes I think Mum wished she just had seven Percies, and didn't have to deal with the rest of us. Especially Fred and George."

"You have six brothers and sisters?"

"Just brothers, unfortunately. The oldest one's Bill. He's twenty-two, ten years older than me. I liked him the most, I cried a lot when he moved out. Our family went to Egypt over the summer, and he came along, that was nice. Then there's Charlie, he's okay too. He trains dragons in Romania, that's really cool. I'll probably never do anything half that interesting." Ginny sighed, softly, ate another Chocolate Frog, and continued. "Then there's Percy, who's an enormous prat. I mean, he's my brother and I love him, but he's an enormous prat. Then there's Fred and George, they're twins."

"Oh, yes, I've heard about some of the things they've done. They must be very funny."

"Yeah, they're alright. They play pranks on the rest of us a lot, especially when we were younger. Mostly Percy, but me and Ron, too."

"And then there's Ron, right? He's a third year, isn't he?" Luna's face lit up a little.

"Um, yeah. He's best friends with Harry Potter. When he was a first year, he came home

that summer and told us all about how he and Harry Potter were best friends. I thought that he was completely full of it, of course. Then he brought Harry to our house over the summer. I made such a complete fool of myself around him, of course. I had a huge crush on him. At first it was nothing too strange, I mean, he was the Boy-Who-Lived and all that. So it was okay if I jumped up and down and squeeled when I saw him at King's Cross when we picked up Ron." She cringed, as if she couldn't believe she had acted so stupid. "But then, when I found out he and Ron really were best friends, it got so weird. It wasn't a celebrity crush anymore, it was just a plain-old crush, and I made such an idiot of myself. I sent him a singing Valentine, Luna. A singing Valentine."

Luna giggled "I remember that. That was you?"

"Yeah. I didn't really care that he was famous anymore. I liked that he was nice to my brother, and he didn't get mad at me for acting like such an idiot.I liked that he was short and skinny, like me, and wore glasses. I just... I liked that he was so normal, and so awesome all at once. I liked that he was brave and adventurous, even though apparently when he lived with Muggles he was a nobody, just like me. Ron told me that. I guess I just always wanted to be a hero like him, and when I met him for real, it made me happy that we weren't that different. Does that sound stupid? Of course we're different. He's the Boy Who Lived, for God's sake."

"Well, I don't think you're so different. Maybe you've never taken down Voldemort single-handedly. But you stood up to Amanda and Natalie for me. That was the bravest thing I've ever seen. But anyway, what about Ron?"

"Ron?"

"Yeah! I want to hear more about him. Didn't he win real-life version of wizard chess in his first year to get to the Sorceror's Stone? I love chess. My mum loved it, too, she and my dad built our house to look like a chess rook."

Ginny laughed. "Yeah, my brother's a big chess geek. Anyway, yeah, I guess Ron's alright. He and I were sort of like best friends, before he went to Hogwarts. Now he doesn't pay any attention to me." Ginny shrugged.

"He's very funny. And he supports the Chudley Cannons, doesn't he? That's my favorite Quidditch team. And last year, Lavender Brown tripped me in the hallway and he told her off."

"Yeah, he also sleeps with a teddy bear named Eugene. Anyway, enough about my family. What about you?"

Luna suddenly looked serious. "Well... my dad's the editor of the Quibbler. And my mum died when I was nine."

Ginny's eyes widened. "Luna, I'm so sorry."

"It's okay. She's not really gone. I'll never, ever forget her."

The two sat in silence for a few minutes, with only the sound of the Chocolate Frogs being eaten to be heard. Then Ginny cleared her throat. "If you don't mind me asking... How did she die?"

"Well, my parents loved to experiment. Magic wasn't just set in stone to them, it was more than just a science. My dad says that in the old days, magic wasn't as rigid as it was today. You know how when you were a little kid, you could do magic without a wand, without trying, just because of how you felt? And that's how they knew if you were really a witch or a wizard?" Ginny nodded. "Well, my dad said that a long time ago, all magic was like that, and eventually it was honed down into specific spells, with specific wand movements and incantations. He said that some people even think that a very long time ago, everyone could do magic."

"Really?"

"Yeah. He said that his personal theory is that at some point, magic and emotion and energy ran smooth together, connecting humanity, and that one day it split, into Wizard Magic and Muggle Magic."

"Muggle Magic?"

"Yeah. My dad thought the pureblood supremacy movement was ridiculous because of that, he said that we're all the same, and if you wanted to see Muggle Magic in action, look at the things Muggles do. Look at Muggle art, look at Muggle science, look at these." She gestured to the books they were reading. "He said that the oldest kind of magic was love. Love in it's purest form, is the strongest kind of magic there is. He says that he thinks that's going to be important in the defeat of Voldemort, although he's not sure how." Luna looked up at Ginny. "You probably think I'm totally bonkers, don't you?"

"Not at all," Ginny said very softly, entranced by Luna's words. "That's...really cool, actually. What does that have to do with your mother?"

"She was doing an experiment, trying to tap into that old magic. But something terrible happened. I remember watching her, standing over a spellbook and a book of Muggle poetry, but she did something wrong. She was trying to understand love as magic, but instead...she conjured up hate." Luna sighed deeply. "My dad was standing next to her, he said that he felt the most horrible, vile feeling in the world. I was standing off in a corner, I felt it too, a little. Did a Dementor attack you on the train in September?"

"Yeah, it was awful."

"Me, too, it was. Anyway, that's what it felt like. My mum got the full blast of it, and she screamed- that was the worst part. Seeing her in pain like that. Then she fell to the ground, screaming in pain... and she died."

Luna said all of this quite calmy, it was Ginny who was in tears. "Oh my God, Luna. I'm so... so sorry. I'm sorry I made you tell me that, it sounds horrible-"

"It's okay." Luna shrugged. "Like I said, she's not really gone. Frog?"

Ginny wasn't exactly sure what Luna meant by that, but she didn't argue. She took the frog and ate it. "Your mother must have been really brave, Luna." If there was anything Ginny respected, it was bravery.

Luna smiled, and pulled a picture out of her robe pocket. "That's her."

She held a picture of her family. Luna looked about eight years old. In the picture, she was smiling, and swaying back and forth, like a fidgety child. She stood between her two parents. Her father was an odd-looking man, with a long nose, long, straggly blonde hair like Luna's, and brown eyes that were staring adoringly at Luna's mother. She was tall and thin, with dark brown hair and big, silvery eyes just like Luna's. She was pretty in an odd sort of way- her smile was crooked and her ears were big, but Ginny liked how she looked; there was something very beautiful about her. She was smiling at her husband and daughter, with her left hand on Luna's head and her arm around her husband's shoulders. Her eyes didn't have the faraway look Luna's did, though- she looked like she couldn't be happier just where she was.

"She was really pretty. You were cute. I like that thing your father's got around his neck," said Ginny, pointing to a triangle on a chain around the man's neck, which glinted in the light as leaned over to give his wife a kiss.

Luna smiled. "Thanks. I don't know what that is on Dad's neck. I've asked him before, all he says is 'in due time'." She put the picture back into her pocket.

Ginny squeeled, and immediately felt stupid.

"What?"

"Nothing, it's just... you know what I said about Harry? About how I wanted to be a hero like him?

"Yeah?"

"Well, Ron tells me about the stuff him and Harry and Hermione do, and it seems like all the awesome stuff they do involves a mystery, like who was Nicholas Flamel, or who... was the heir of Slytherin." She paused and looked away for a moment. "But anyway, maybe this could be our mystery, Luna! Your dad's locket, and your mom's death and the old magic! We could be awesome just like them!"

"Like Ron?"

"...Yeah, and Harry and Hermione. It would be an adventure."

Luna smiled. "That sounds lovely."

They high-fived, and a feeling of pure happiness rose up in Ginny's chest. Everything from last year was finally behind her, and she had a best friend. A best friend, and a purpose.


	4. The Deathly Hallows

Being Neville Longbottom was proving to be very, very difficult.

It's not like he meant to leave that list of passwords lying around. He knew it was rather stupid to have them written down in the first place, but they were so hard to remember, especially with that mental Sir Cadugan changing them several times a day. He certainly wasn't trying to help Sirius Black break into the boy's dormitory.

That didn't stop Professor McGonnagal.

"What were you thinking?" she screeched. "Leaving those passwords around so ANYONE could find them! Why do you think we have passwords, Mr. Longbottom? Certainly not so that some forgetful, irresponsible little boy can just leave them lying around and jeopardizing everyone's safety! Mr. Ronald Weasley was attacked, boy! Do you realize that?"

"I know, ma'am," Neville responded in a quivering voice. He shifted around in Professor McGonnagals chair, nervously. He felt absolutely awful about Ron. "I didn't mean to lose the passwords. It was an accident. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry, too, Neville." she sighed. "I know you would never do something bad on purpose, but honestly, you need to start being more careful."

"I know, ma'am."

She sighed again. "You're excused."

Neville got up and left as quickly as he could. As he walked down the corridor to the Gryffindor common room, people sneered and rolled their eyes at him. He looked down, his face bright red.

When he got to the common room, he had to wait outside for a half hour for someone to show up to give him the password. Finally, Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil and Amanda McDonald arrived.

"Well, gee," began Amanda, "I would tell you the password, but, oh, who knows, this time you might tell You-Know-Who himself." Lavender giggled, and Parvati, looking rather apologetic, couldn't help but laugh a little too.

"Oh, knock it off," said Hermione Granger, appearing almost out of nowhere with, as usual, several books tucked under her arm. "Neville, the password is "marmalade", and don't let these idiots bother you." Neville and Hermione walked in as Lavender, Amanda and Parvati stood there, looking shocked.

Hermione was obviously in a bad mood, as she had been for the past month or so. Her cat, Crookshanks, had eaten Ron Weasley's rat, Scabbers, and the two of them had been fighting about it. Harry Potter had taken Ron's side, and Neville sometimes heard Hermione curled up on the couch in front of the fireplace in the common room in the middle of the night, crying, when he'd come down to retrieve his pet toad, Trevor, after one of his frequent escape attempts.

Hermione sat down in front of the fireplace and pulled out a piece of parchment and a her Ancient Runes textbook. She started writing, then looked down at her paper, then at her over-stuffed bag, and began to cry.

Neville wasn't sure what to do. "Um...Hermione...are...um..."

She continued crying. He walked over to her. "Are you okay?" he said, a little louder.

Hermione took a deep breath, paused and then wailed "NOOOO!", grabbed at Neville's robes, buried her head in them, and began to sob.

Neville sat down and began to pat her on the back, awkwardly "Um..."

"I'm NOT okay! R-Ron and Harry are m-mad at me and I miss them-m! I wa-was just tr-rying to keep H-harry safe when I turned in his st-stupid Firebolt! Aa-nd I kn-know Crookshanks ate Ron's stupid r-rat. I'm- I'm-I'm SORRYYY!" she wailed, and blew her nose into Neville's robes.

"Um..."

"And n-now Hargrid's hyppogriff Buckbeak is on tr-trial, be-because he attacked stupid Ma-malfoy, even it was his own fau-fault, a-and Ron and Harry and m-me were supposed to help w-with his defense, but now it's j-just me, and the hearing's co-coming up soon and I don't know what t-to do." She continued to sob as she pulled out her wand and mumbled a spell that removed her mucus from Neville's robes.

"A-and I too-took too m-many classes this year, be-because I thought I could handle it, b-but I ca-can't because I'm n-not per-per-PERFECT," she continued, letting out some post-cry hiccups. She wiped her eyes and turned to Neville. "You're the first person who's asked how I am."

Neville looked at her, bewildered. "Wow. You?"

"What?"

"Nothing, it's just that... you're Hermione Granger. I never knew you ever felt like that. You're so... put together. And smart, and stuff."

"Yeah, well, I bit off more than I can chew this year. And I'm up to my ears in homework. And an innocent hyppogriff's life is in my hands. And my best friends hate me, and my cat is a vicious murderer who might turn on me any second." She giggled a little, and so did Neville.

"You know, Hermione, if you're behind in homework, maybe I could... well, I mean, you're always helping me in Potions... I know it's cheating, but maybe I could... help you?"

Hermione looked like he had suggested she ask Professor Snape out on a date "'_Help'_ me? With _homework?"_

"Look, I think the teachers would much rather the smartest damn student in this school cheat a little on a couple of homework assignments than have a nervous breakdown because her 'best friends' are being a couple of pricks. Come on." He pulled a Transfiguration textbook out of her bag, along with a piece of parchment and a quill, and began to write Hermione's name on the parchment. "I'll just do the writing and busy work. You'll do all the actual thinking, I'm just here to help."

"Wow." Hermione's eyes widened. "This feels so _wrong..."_. She then giggled wickedly. "Oh, screw it. Let's do this."

And so they did, for the next few hours. They just sat there, with Neville occasionally asking Hermione what to write and Hermione stopping every five minutes to either thank him or moan about how she was going to get expelled.

After a while, Neville asked "You know, Hermione, you're taking more classes than they are class periods a day. How does that work?"

Hermione turned bright red and gulped. "Well... oh my God, I'm REALLY not supposed to tell anyone this, but... I have a time-turner."

"A what?"

"It's this." She pulled a tiny hourglass on a string out from under the top of her shirt. "It lets me... turn back time a bit. I can be in two classes at once."

"Wow. And they let you have this just to get to class?"

"Yeah."

"So, let me get this straight: we have the capability for time travel, but instead of using it to go back in time, kidnap baby You-Know-Who, bring him here and raise him as an upstanding member of society, we're using it to help Hermione Granger overacheive."

This made Hermione laugh. "Yeah, well, that's the adults around her for you." Her face then turned into a scowl. "Oh, what am I doing? Here I am, cheating on homework and telling you about my time-turner. Who am I?"

Neville chuckled. "I know it's weird to hear me, of all people, saying this, but don't worry so much."

Hermione sighed, and then smiled. "Well, it looks like we're done. Thank you so much, Neville." She began stuffing books back into her bag.

"No problem."

Right before Neville went to sleep that night, it occured to him that he hadn't thought about the password catastrophe since after he saw Hermione until just then.

The next morning, the password catastrophe was all too apparent. When he went down to the Great Hall for breakfast, he sat down across from Ron and Harry, who were still being nice to him.

"Hey, how's it going?"

"Horrible." Neville answered honestly. Not wanting to sound sulky, he added "Actually, it's not that bad. McGonnagal wasn't to harsh on me."

"Well, that's goo-" Ron stopped mid-sentence, looking at something. Neville turned around and looked. Hermione, seeing Neville and waving, was walking over. She sat down next to Neville and faced Harry and Ron.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Ron said, nastily.

"I'm sitting next to my _friend_, the only person who's bothered to talk to me in the past, oh, month."

"Yeah, well, maybe you'd have a few more friends if you didn't go around sicking that

mangy cat of yours on other people's pets."f

"Oh, honestly, Ron..."

Harry groaned silently, put his head on the table and gave Neville a "help me" look.

Neville looked back, sympathetically, when his owl swooped down in front of him, dropping a bright scarlet piece of paper on his plate.

Ron and Hermione stopped bickering to look down at what was unmistakably a Howler.

"Run, mate." Ron advised.

Neville didn't need telling twice. He got up and ran out of the Great Hall, just as the

paper burst to life. He heard the Slytherins roaring with laughter as he escaped the Great Hall. Standing in the corridor, he could still hear the letter, but he couldn't help but stay and listen. It was his grandmother's voice, screaming.

"_NEVILLE FRANK LONGBOTTOM! I AM _UNBELIEVABLY_ DISAPPOINTED IN YOU. A DISGRACE! A DISGRACE TO OUR FAMILY! THAT'S WHAT YOU ARE! THERE I WAS, SITTING AT HOME, THINKING MY GRANDSON IS OFF AT HOGWARTS LEARNING MAGIC SO ONE DAY HE MIGHT PULL HIS GODDAMN HEAD OUT OF THE CLOUDS AND DO SO GODDAMN GOOD IN THIS WORLD, AND I GET A LETTER TELLING ME THAT YOU'VE LEFT THE PASSWORDS TO GRYFFINDOR TOWER LYING AROUND THE CASTLE! AND AS IF THAT WASN'T BAD ENOUGH, OH NO, SIRIUS BLACK FOUND THEM AND BROKE IN! A BOY WAS STABBED! _IT COULD HAVE BEEN HARRY POTTER_!"_

Ron looked around indignantly, but no one payed him any attention.

_"DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS, YOU IDIOT? YOU COULD HAVE GOTTEN _HARRY JAMES POTTER _KILLED WITH YOUR FOOLISHNESS! NEVER BEFORE HAVE I SEEN SUCH A STUPID, FORGETFUL EXCUSE FOR A WIZARD IN MY LIFE! AND MY OWN GRANDSON! I'VE NEVER BEEN SO ASHAMED. IF YOUR PARENTS WERE STILL...STILL IN THEIR RIGHT MINDS, I CAN ONLY IMAGINE HOW THEY'D REACT. THE SON OF FRANK AND ALICE LONGBOTTOM, BEHAVING THAT WAY! NO ONE COULD HAVE IMAGINED THAT. YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU WERE BORN, NEVILLE, I HAD GREAT HOPES FOR YOU. HOPES THAT YOU MIGHT BE AS GOOD AS MY SON AND HIS WIFE. BUT AFTER THIRTEEN YEARS OF THIS PURE, UNRIVALED IDIOCY, I'VE COME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT YOU ARE SIMPLY A FAILURE, A FAILURE AND A DISGRACE. I HAVEN'T ANY IDEA HOW ANYONE AS PATHETIC AS YOU MADE IT INTO GRYFFINDOR, ANYWAY. YOU SHOULD BE SITTING OUT YOUR SCHOOL YEARS IN HUFFLEPUFF!"' _

This caused a lot of booing from the Hufflepuff table, and laughter from the Slytherins.

"_YOU HAVE BROUGHT SHAME UPON THE LONGBOTTOM NAME, NEVILLE. YOU'VE DISGRACED OUR FAMILY! I'M EMBARRASSED TO CALL YOU MY GRANDSON!"_

With that, the Slytherin table erupted into applause, and Neville felt sick. Dreading what he would see, he looked back into the Great Hall.

Hermione, looking enraged, had pulled out her wand and was aiming it at the Howler. On the word "grandson", she yelled "Incendio!" and the letter burst into flames.

She wasn't the only one who looked upset: Harry and Ron looked disgusted, and Ginny Weasley looked across the room at him, and gave him a sympathetic look. Fred Weasley clapped when Hermione set the letter on fire, and George quickly put it out before any teachers noticed.

Neville took a few tentative steps back into the Great Hall, and the Gryffindors gestured that he come over. He sat down next to Hermione.

"I'm so sorry, Neville. That was awful." Hermione patted him on the arm.

"Yeah, mate," said Ron, vocally agreeing with Hermione for the first time in a month, which made Harry smile. "That was way worse than the one my mum sent me. I mean," he added hastily, "no offense to you Gran or anything, but that was..."

"Horrible?" offered Ginny, her twin brothers nodding in agreement.

Neville shrugged. "Gran's just like that."

"Adults shouldn't talk to kids that way," said Hermione, still looking enraged. "_A failure and a disgrace_, honestly, she makes it sound as if you wrote Sirius Black an invitation to come stab Harry. You just made a mistake."

"Thanks, Hermione." Neville was starting to feel better.

"You don't believe any of that, do you? That you're a failure? Because you're not. You belong in Gryffindor."

"She's right, Neville" said Ron, nodding, and Harry looked up and smiled, as though thanking the heavens for Ron and Hermione's cease-fire, however temporary.

Ron and Hermione continued to be pleasant for the rest of breakfast, and moods lifted considerably when Harry received a brand new broomstick. Later that day, he and Hermione went down to Hagrid's hut to help him work on Buckbeak's case. Neville wasn't as good at research as Hermione, but he helped her organize the notes she made and was happy to join in the discussion of what a git Malfoy was for getting Buckbeak in trouble in the first place. That night, Neville went to bed, happier than he had been in a long time.

A week later, Neville was studying in the library, when a very sad-looking Hermione walked up to him, holding a tear-stained piece of parchment.

"Oh, it's awful. Hagrid lost the case."

This made Neville very upset "But...after all the work you did... how could they...?"

"I know, it's trem_en_dously unfair. But there's going to be an appeal, so we've got a second chance; I know I'm not going to give up. And guess what?"

"What?"

"I've made up with Harry and Ron! I showed them the letter and mentioned the appeal, and Ron said that I wouldn't have to do all the work myself this time and I...well, I started crying, and hugged him, and I told him I was sorry about Scabbers, and he said it was alright... and, oh, Neville, I'm so happy I'm not fighting with them anymore!"

"Yeah. That's...great." Neville said in what he hoped was a supportive voice. It was great, wasn't it? Harry, Ron and Hermione were his friends, so he wanted them to be happy, but somehow this development made him rather sad. He'd miss being Hermione's best friend, even if it had only been for a week.

"By the way, we're still on for studying tonight, right?"

Neville should have known better. "Of _course_," he said, relieved. "I wouldn't miss it for the world. I mean," he blushed, "because I _really_ need help with that new Potions unit, is all."

Hermione smiled. "Good! I'll see you tonight then."

He waited for Hermione in the common room that night. "Hey," said Ginny Weasley, a nice, quiet second year girl. "Exploding Snap?"

"Sure," said Neville. He saw Ginny standing up for that weird Ravenclaw girl, Loony something, a few weeks ago, and had gained a new respect for her.

After a few rounds of Exploding Snap, Ginny spoke. "Neville, do you have a best friend?"

Neville frowned a little. "Well, not really... unless you count Trevor."

"Oh... it's just that last year, I had a best friend. And it didn't turn out very well. And now I have a best friend again, and I'm not sure how it will turn out. I'm... I'm scared. I poured my heart out to Tom- I mean, my best friend, and the same with this one, and I don't want her to betray me." She stopped, it was awkward baring her soul to Neville.

"Well, a while ago Hermione Granger opened up to me about something, and we're still friends. So, I don't think-"

Hermione stepped suddenly through the portrait hole. "Sorry I'm late. Some trouble with my Time-Tu-" she stopped when she saw Ginny. "Nothing. Let's get started."

"So. You reckon we should have a name?"

They were sitting in Luna's room, on her bed, with their usual stash of Chocolate frogs and young adult fiction. Ravenclaw security was a bit easier to get by than Gryffindor.

"Yes, I think so..." Luna stared off into space. "But what would it be?"

"And what's our mission?"

"Well," said Luna, "First, to figure out what's up with that symbol Daddy wears around his neck, and why it's important. Second, to learn all we can about the old magic, before it split between muggle and wizard. Third, since we might as well cover everything, to combat all nastiness, bullying, injustice, and whatever else bothers us, and stand up for what we believe in."

"Excellent," said Ginny. She pulled out a muggle notebook, and on the first page wrote Goals, and copied what Luna said. Then she flipped to the front and wrote "In loving memory of the great Elizabeth Lovegood, loving wife and mother, and brave and wise witch."

"It's perfect," Luna sighed contentedly. "All we need is a name."

"Hmm... Well, I'm sure we'll think of something. Anyway, I did a little research on Wizard symbols, and it turns out that that triange with the line down the middle and the circle that your dad wears is the symbol of the Deathly Hallows."

"That's great! But what are the Deathly Hallows?"

"Do you remember the Tales of Beetle the Bard?"

"Yeah, my mum read them to me when I was little. Our favorite was the Tale of the Three Brothers."

Ginny nodded excitedly "Yes! Exactly! The cloak, the stone, and the wand! They're the Deathly Hallows!"

Luna squeeled again, and Ginny giggled. "I know, it's very exciting. But I was thinking about that story, and the isn't the moral that you shouldn't try to cheat Death? It's almost like it's saying Death isn't that bad. And I was thinking about what you said about your mum..."

Luna nodded. "My dad taught me to think that way. He said that death was nothing to fear."

"Right. So that's important. Not fearing death."

"You know," Ginny began, tucking a lock of red hair behind her ear, "Ron told me that when Harry was in the hospital wing after facing Voldemort in his first year, Dumbledore was talking to him about Nicholas Flamel, and how he'd die without the stone, and he said something like... "To the well organized mind, death is but the next great adventure." So maybe our name should have something to do with Dumbledore... Ron says they have to break the rules all the time with their adventures, so if we have to it might help our cause a bit to have a name that has to do with the headmaster. How about Dumbledore's Army? It has to do with Dumbledore, and it's kind of funny, cause there's only two of us, so it's not really an army."

"I love it," Luna smiled, and the two shared a chocolate frog.

Over the next few weeks, Ginny and Luna were vigilant for mentions of death and fear, and with the Dementors all about, it wasn't too difficult. Ginny found out from Ron that Harry's Boggart was a Dementor ("his biggest fear is unhappiness, not death!") and Luna attempted to comfort Lavender Brown when her rabbit was attacked by a fox, saying that death wasn't to be feared, which caused Lavender to look at her like she had seven heads and resume weeping. Overall, not much progress was made until a very unusual History of Magic Class.

Professor Binns was the only ghost who taught at Hogwarts. When he was still alive, he was generally regarded as a very dull old fellow who lived and breathed history. The story went that one day, when he was very, very old and frail, he was in the middle of a lesson, and he passed away right then and there. Then, moments later, he took on an eerie, transparent form and continued to teach. Most of the students were so bored with his lesson that they weren't paying enough attention to have noticed, but eventually it was figured out that a ghost was teaching at Hogwarts. Albus Dumbledore, being a kind man, of course allowed him to stay, although he wasn't a particularly good teacher, he knew his history.

The Ravenclaws had History of Magic with the Gryffindors, so Luna and Ginny usually spent that class passing notes and generally paying no attention to Binns. Today, however, he was more interesting than usual.

"Today," he began as the students took their seats, "is my deathday. It has been fifty years since I walked the earth as a living man."

He paused, allowing the class to take this in. The students looked at each other, confused. Professor Binns never talked about himself, and he certainly never made eye contact. He just droned on about history, almost as if to himself.

"Does anyone know how one becomes a ghost?"

The class was shocked. Never before had Professor Binns asked a question of them. After a few moments, Colin Creevey raised his hand slowly.

"Yes..." Binns looked down at his seating chart. "Colon?"

The class giggled at the mispronunciation. Colin rolled his eyes. "It's, um, Colin, and a person becomes a ghost when they overcome death. I figure you must be really strong, to become a ghost, then because it means you've beaten death. You've gotten out of dying. You keep on living, even after you're time. You won."

A few students nodded in agreement, and then took notice of Professor Binns. Never before had he shown any kind of emotion at all, but now he was shaking with what looked like a combination of fear and rage. "No," he said.

For the first time ever, he stepped away from behind his podium and floated over to where Colin sat. "No." he repeated, staring harshly at Colin, who looked as though he might pass out. "Never, ever for one second believe that a ghost has won. Life is a wonderful gift, something you all must learn to appreciate. This?" he pointed to himself. "Is not life. It's a shell of what life was, a whispy memory. Do you want to know how a man really becomes a ghost?"

A trembling Colin nodded, and squeaked "mh-hm!" and seemed to relax a bit when Professor Binns floated away, back to his podium.

'When I died, it was after months of sickness. I knew it was coming. I chose to ignore it. I went on as though it was all as usual, because if I thought of death, fear consumed me. I couldn't stop living. I wouldn't."

Luna and Ginny looked at each other and nodded, exitedly.

"Fifty years ago exactly, I was standing at this very podium, talking about the goblin rebellions of the late fourteenth century, and suddenly, death struck me, right in the heart. I fell over at my podium, and than something strange happened."

"I was existing in a sort of in-between state. I was not alive, I was not yet dead. I had the sudden sensation of a choice- there were two options, right in front of me. Everything I had ever felt, deep in my heart of hearts, pulled me towards one. It was a bright light, and a feeling of a new beginning. But oh, I was afraid."

"The second choice felt wrong. It felt sick and fake and wrong, but my fear overcame me, and I chose. Seconds later I was back at my podium, talking about goblins." His voice shook, and he began to cry. Silvery, transparent tears fell to the floor and disappeared.

"I have had fifty years to think about my choice. And I will have fifty after this, and fifty more after that, and still fifty more after that. And I realized why Death scared me so- I had never really lived life. All my life was spent afraid, never letting anyone in, never doing anything that scared me."

"Go out, children and live your lives. Do not," he added "take this to mean do foolish things for the sake of bravery. There is a difference between accepting death and teasing it, and that would be the latter. Do meaningful things. Whatever it is that means to you, do it. Live your lives, and when death comes, accept it gracefully. Whatever you do, do not choose this. Never choose this."

The class sat there in stunned silence. A few students were crying quietly, a few had their brows furrowed in thought and confusion. Poor Colin Creevey looked terrified.

"I never knew that about ghosts! Oh, this is incredible... and who would have thought, boring old Professor Binns?" Ginny scribbled furiously in the notebook.

"I feel awful for him," Luna replied as they walked out of class. "He's trapped that way forever, Ginny, don't you realize?"

"I know, it's terrible." Ginny frowned, and, head leaning over to write, nearly bumped into a collum. "I wouldn't like to be immortal... I mean, it's not natural, is it? I guess that's what the Tale of the Three Brothers and your father and Dumbledore were all getting at..."

Still hunched over her notebook, she bumped straight into Nevile. "Hey. How're things going with your friend?" he asked.

Luna looked confused, and Ginny blushed. "Great," she said earnestly, and pulled Luna away from Neville and down the hall with her.


End file.
